Digital Angel
by flutterpai
Summary: TRON au - Dean,a program in search of the brother he lost to corruption, is accompanied by a mysterious program who can't seem to help but save his life.


Digital Angel

"Hey, it's you." Dean grunted out to the program crouching next to him as he came to. "Saved my ass again." He dusted off the remaining chips of the now busted light cycle he stole off his suit as he sat up. "To what do I owe the frequent rescues? Am I the Princess Peach to your Super Mario?" Dean smirked at him as the two stood up, receiving only a look of confusion in return.

The other program squinted and tilted his head at Dean. "You were racing in a non-designated zone."

"Well I ain't really the 'designated zone' type. And that doesn't answer my question."

"I'm assigned to you." The blue-lightsuited program answered plainly in a voice deep and gravelly enough to rival Dean's.

Dean blinked for a second at him, taken aback not only by the tone, but by the intensity of the eyes staring back at him. They were a deep, bold blue, quite unlike that of the bright blocks of light lining the black suit and long coat he was wearing. Dean shook himself out of the temporary daze when the implications of the program's answer hit him: He's being kept tabs on by the higher-ups because of what happened with his brother.

"So, what, then?" He barked, his tone immediately changed to that of frustration. "You one of those new guardian programs or whatever? What, am I on threat watch?"

"Essentially."

They stared at each other for a moment, Dean awaiting some elaboration, and the other just staring back blankly, clearly not intending to give any. Dean rolled his eyes and turned to pick up his remaining light cycle stick that had detached itself from his right thigh holster when he crashed. Or, he supposed, when this mysterious program caught him. He wasn't entirely sure what happened after he blacked out when his racing opponent knocked him off the edge of a cliff. Irritated, and still hazy on the whole situation as he was, Dean still figured he owed the guy his gratitude. "Well, uh, thanks for-" He turned back around to see the other program had vanished.

Dean huffed. "Rude."

That was, by Dean's count, the fourth time the mysterious program saved him from certain deresolution. He hadn't gotten so much of a word out of the guy the previous times, but even though they did manage to have some semblance of a conversation, he still didn't get any useful information.

The guardian programs, called Angels, were a fairly new addition to the Grid. Ever since Dean's brother, Sam, got corrupted and went rogue along with multiple other programs, these Angels have been sent out to make sure no one else fell out of line. Dean expected to have one on his ass eventually, but he was still a bit annoyed nonetheless.

Dean returned to his quarters and lied down in his bunk, his mind adrift with questions about his mysterious savior. Far too restless with curiosity for sleep, he decided he needed answers now. He wondered how he could possibly contact the Angel without knowing its name. He could ask around, but that would take forever. Besides, he didn't want anyone else in his business. All of the programs he worked with knew about what happened with his brother, and he had about enough of their opinions to last a million cycles. Dean decided to take to take the drastic route.

Dean drove his lightcycle up the side of a tall building and parked it on one of the upper ledges. He hopped off the bike, popped it back on his thigh holster upon its return to stick form, and peered down off the side at the floor below. He nodded, shrugged, then jumped. Dove head first, cheering with adrenaline like a maniac. Streams of lights on the buildings, vehicles, and on-looking programs, passed by him in a blur as he sped closer and closer to the ground floor.

Just before the data on his memory disc flashed before his eyes, a pair of arms swooped him up, and flew him to a nearby balcony.

After the two landed, Dean shook his whole body, flailed his limbs and danced about, laughing. "That was exhilarating!"

The Angel program stood across from him, eyes wide with shock, his fists clenched and chest heaving. Long blades of neon blue light extended out from his back furling slightly inward as he ducked his head.

"Dean. What were you thinking?"

Dean turned to him and his goofy expression changed immediately into that of awe at the bright wings spanning out from the man in front of him.

"Whoa." Dean gasped. This was new.

The Angel returned his steely gaze to Dean as he walked up close, getting in his face. "I said," he growled, grabbing Dean's chin to make him focus. "What were you thinking?"

Dean brushed his hand away and backed up. "I was thinking I needed some answers, and since you didn't exactly leave me your business card, I figured this was the best way to bring you out."

"This was, by far, _not_ the best way to bring me out! If I had been otherwise occupied-"

"Well what the hell else was I supposed to do? You don't exactly stick around for pleasantries. Just 'poof, save my life', then 'poof, gone'. You don't even give me a chance to thank you!"

"There's no need for thanks. It's my job."

"Well, it may be just a job to you, but it also happens to be my _life,_ you son of a bitch."

"I-I meant no insult, Dean." The Angel stuttered, stumbling on his words for the first time, making him seem a little less like another mindless drone.

"Yeah, yeah." Dean exhaled a deep breath and shuddered, still getting over the rush of his near suicide attempt. "So, since I did get you out here, mind telling me your name?"

"Castiel."

"Well, nice to meet you, Castiel." Dean extended a hand and Castiel tentatively shook it. "See? Now was that so hard?" Dean winked and the Angel shook his head, his lips turning up just slightly.

"That a smile? Hey, we're really making some progress here!" Dean beamed with a chuckle and slapped a hand on Castiel's shoulder.

Castiel looked to the hand on his shoulder, not in an unwelcoming way, but more like he didn't know himself how to feel about its presence. Dean wasn't quite sure what to make of the expression, so he removed the hand with a jolt and awkwardly placed both hands behind his back.

"Was there anything else you needed to know, Dean? Or did you almost derezz yourself just to know my name?"

"Whoa, okay, sass!" Dean laughed. "No, I wanted to ask you why exactly I'm on threat watch when I haven't done a damn thing."

"It's not that you are a threat, Dean. It's that there are many who are a threat to you."

"And? I'll gank 'em like always. I hunt corrupted programs. Why would I become one?!"

"Sam did."

"Right. Programs after me because of my brother. That's nothin' new."

"I'm sure that's true, but I am assigned to you regardless. Honestly, Dean, I don't know much more than you do. I only know that it is required of me to protect your life."

Dean huffed. Castiel walked up close to him yet again, but with more concern rather than threat to his manner. "And, again, I don't mean that to belittle you. It's simply the truth."

They looked at each other for a quiet moment, Dean's eyes taking in the features of the program in front of him. Messy dark head of hair, strong, stubbled jaw line, a set of plush pink lips, and those intense blue eyes that seemed to be examining him just as curiously. Dean gulped.

After far too long, Dean broke the silence by clearing his throat. "Okay, so, next question then. How do I contact you besides leaping off tall buildings when I'm bored?"

"Just call my name. I'll hear you."

Dean quirked a brow. "You serious?"

"Yes."

"Just...say your name."

Castiel looked at him unsure how he could more clear. "...Yes."

"Okay. That's friggin' weird, but okay."

"It's simply the nature of an Angel's programming, Dean."

"Whatever you say, terminator." Dean popped his lightcycle stick off of his thigh and climbed up on to the rail of the balcony. "Oh, Cas, one more thing," He turned to Castiel with a smirk.

"Yes, Dean?"

"Nice wings."

He leapt off the rail as his lightcycle transformed from a green, blinking digital outline to solid matter beneath him. The bike skidded on the ground, sending glowing sparks across the black pavement, as he drove away with a smile on his face.

If he didn't know better, he'd say he just made an Angel blush.

"So uh, you seein' any end to these guys in sight?" Dean asked as he swung a blade at a corrupted program, derezzing it, before moving on to fight another. "Cuz things are lookin' pretty grim on my end."

"Approximately 11 more, Dean." Castiel answered far too calmly as he ran his own blade through a program, while zapping one behind him with simply a glowing blue palm to its face. Dean found that power of his damn scary, but he couldn't deny it was a thrill to watch.

Once they finally cleared out the group of programs attacking them, the two approached each other while catching their breath. "I've never seen so many in one place before." Dean commented while wiping his brow. "And they're getting more and more zombie-like."

"They ambushed us. They must know we're coming."

Dean shook his head as he looked at the viscera of shattered programs surrounding them. "I hope Sammy isn't turning into one of those things."

"No. Those were low-level programs. Your brother is far too advanced to degrade that far."

"I hope you're right. Hell, I hope we find him at all." Dean let out a small, defeated laugh.

Castiel placed a hand on Dean's shoulder and squeezed, reassuring him. "We will, Dean. Luc and his army are hiding somewhere in this perimeter. Sam will be with them."

"Yeah." Dean sighed. "Just...seems like we've been out here looking forever with no luck. What if they're nowhere near here?"

Castiel stepped up a bit closer as he let the hand on Dean's shoulder slide down to his bicep. "You really think that's possible after all the interrogating you've done? All the intel I gathered before we set out?"

"It's just..." Dean ducked his head, unable to look at the concerned Angel.

"We'll find them, Dean. We'll find your brother." Castiel cupped Dean's cheek, turning his head to face him. "You trust me, don't you?"

"Cas, of course. After everything we've been through? You're about the only damn thing on the Grid I do trust." Dean curled his fingers around Castiel's forearms as they looked into each other's eyes.

The two programs had formed an incredible bond over their time together that neither had experienced with another being before. Since that night Castiel finally introduced himself, Dean called on him to help on many a corrupt program-hunt. It got to the point where Castiel barely left his assignment's side, due to an increase in threatening programs, and also to the two genuinely enjoying one another's company. Not that either party had admitted that to each other, or themselves.

Their relationship thus far has been kept to mutual life-saving, along with a lingering hand on an arm or shoulder, the occasional cupping of a cheek, and lots and lots of staring. Dean had a pretty good idea what all these signals meant, but he had no clue if Castiel was aware, as the Angel was a program all too new in inception to know what normal interaction is like. Dean pushed any sort of feelings of a non-platonic nature aside, so as not to take advantage of the only friend he's got, or worse, lose him.

Painful as it would be to lose Cas' friendship, the odds were against them in this crusade to find the corrupted programs' leader as it is, so if Dean had to go it alone he may as well erase himself. No, alone was not an option.

No Cas? No brother ever again? Dean didn't want to think about that.

Dean awoke to find himself being cradled by the Angel deep inside a pitch black cave. The only thing to be seen in the darkness were the glowing green lights on his suit, and the blue ones on Castiel's.

"Cas?" Dean whispered. "What happened?"

"You fell asleep shortly after we stopped to rest after that fight." Castiel's voice was in hot breaths on Dean's ear, sending an involuntary shiver through him. "I heard some of Luc's soldiers approaching, so I flew us here to hide."

"What? You shoulda woke me up so we could take em on!" Dean's whisper turned into an entirely too loud series of grunts.

"No, Dean, you needed the rest. Besides," Dean could hear the smile in the Angel's tone. "I saw the base where the soldiers came from. We're getting close."

Dean reached back and pulled Castiel's face forward by the neck to give him a big kiss on the cheek. "Awesome." Castiel's shy smile could be seen under the glow of blue and green lights.

"This it?" Dean jerked the neck of the soldier he had braced with a blade to his throat as he asked harshly.

"Yes." The soldier choked out, then laughed between coughs. "You fools don't stand a chance. Luc and his army will-"

"Just put the entry code in, you mook."

The soldier limply placed his fingers on the side of the rocky, black structure they stood in front of. Numbers lit up and beeped as he typed in a code that revealed a doorway.

"Good. Thanks for your cooperation," Dean slit the soldier's throat, sending a burst of neon orange sparks from his neck just before the rest of him crumbled and dissolved. "Dick."

Once inside the dark corridor, Castiel typed on the wall next to the door, bringing up a map of the structure. "There are four levels: the prison level, which we're on, 2 levels of barracks, and the top most level that has several aircrafts. There is also a large room at the center of the top level that I assume Luc must be in."

"Wait, Cas, prison level? What the hell are they taking prisoners for?"

"Shall we find out?"

"Sure, let's bust em out. We could use the help."

Castiel finished uploading the map to his identity disc and the two ventured forth down the hall to find the jail cells. The hallway was lit only with tiny squares of orange light along the tops of the walls. Dean and Castiel stuck out like sore thumbs, glowing bright forms of blue and green striding down the hall. Two guards at the end of the path spotted them and jumped up to attack. Castiel sped forward, his wings appearing and spreading out as he glided swiftly toward the two guards. He made quick work of them, grabbing them by their helmeted heads, slamming them back against the door behind them, and zapping them into an explosion of neon orange blocks.

Dean jogged up to meet Castiel up by the doors leading to the prison cells. He took off his disc and sliced it hard down the center of the doors, bursting them open. The two entered to find two rows of prisoners gaping at them from their cells. A few cheered out, some begged to be saved, but among them Dean heard a familiar voice cry out.

"Dean?!"

"Sammy?!" Dean looked around in panic, trying to find his brother. "Where are you?!"

"Down here! Second to last cell!" Dean and Castiel took off down the stretch of cells until they reached Sam, whose hands were pressed up against the amber glass wall of his prison.

Dean placed his hand on the glass over one of Sam's. "I can't believe it." He shook his head as he looked his brother up and down. His light suit was scuffed and battered, his eyes were dark, and his face was marked with injuries. "What happened? We thought you were in Luc's army. What are you doing in a prison cell?"

"Dean," Sam lowered his head in defeat and walked to the back of his cell.

"Your identity disc is gone." Castiel pointed out with a furrow-browed look of concern. Dean looked to him, then to Sam's back which was indeed without a disc.

"Yeah. Luc took it when I refused to join him. He used it to somehow make a copy of me and fuse his own data with the clone."

"So Luc's your copy and pasted evil twin?" Sam nodded at his older brother. "Well, no wonder no one's seen the bastard in such a long time. They all think he's you!"

"You were never a corrupt program to begin with." Castiel stared at Sam, and Dean did the same, his face falling into despair at the sudden realization.

"This whole time you've been in here?!"

Sam walked back up to the glass and nodded. "Anyone Luc tried to recruit, but refused to join his dick squad got tossed in a jail waiting to be repurposed."

"Repurposed? To become one of those crazy zombie programs?"

"Yeah."

"Not happening." Dean went in full protective older brother mode. "We're busting you the hell outta here and getting your disc back."

He turned to Castiel who nodded and unfurled his wings once again. With a burst of power, he flew down the hall of glass cells, shattering them with sheer force. The prisoners walked out cautiously, as Castiel stood at the end of the row, letting his wings curl back inward and disappear. Sam blinked at him, bewildered. "Dean, who _is_ that guy?"

Dean grinned. "That's Castiel. My Angel."

Seeking revenge, the prisoners decided to go up to the next two floors to attack the unsuspecting soldiers in their barracks. Dean, Sam, and Castiel took the opportunity to ambush Luc, but he was nowhere to be found in the upper floor.

"Shit. You think he took off with Sam's disc 'cause he knows we're here?"

"No. All of the aircrafts are still here." Castiel took stock of the lightjets and recognizers parked on either side of the room. "He's still here somewhere. There must be an area in this structure that is hidden on the map."

Sam looked around the room, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "I'll see if I can hack it." He jogged up to a nearby wall and began to type in code after code.

After a few moments, a staircase began to emerge from the ceiling. One by one, orange light lined steps lowered directly behind Castiel, who turned around with a jolt.

"Whoa, Sammy, are you doing that?" Dean gaped up at the stairs as they lowered down, and Sam did the same, shaking his head 'no'.

They heard clapping along with laughter coming from the top of the staircase after the bottom step touched the ground. "Very impressive, you three. Very impressive."

The trio glowered at the program who stole Sam's visage as he walked down the steps, still applauding.

"Give Sam his disc back, you son of a bitch." Dean growled and stepped forward as he twirled his blade in his hand, poised to attack.

Luc paid Dean no mind, instead stopping to stand right next to Castiel. Too close, for Dean's comfort. He knew Cas could handle himself, but still, Dean didn't like it. And he sure didn't like the way Luc was looking the Angel up and down. "Hello there, brother." Luc said to Castiel with a wicked grin.

"Brother?" Dean and Sam asked at the same time.

"Yes, Luc was the first Angel. Rather, a beta version that failed. Miserably." Castiel glared at him with disgust.

"Now, now, brother. No need to get nasty." Luc chuckled as he placed a hand on Castiel's shoulder. Dean inched forward, ready to pounce on the bastard, but before he had a chance Castiel whipped his blade out and swung across Luc's chest.

Luc stumbled backward, only to immediately spring forward to attack Castiel, and the two started to fight viciously. Dean handed his brother his extra blade, and the two followed the fight, both ready to jump in if need be. Luc landed a hard kick to Castiel's stomach, knocking him a few feet back, but he managed to keep from falling. Dean leapt forward to swing at Luc, who vanished before the hit could land. He reappeared behind Castiel, and grabbed onto the disc attached to the Angel's back.

"Cas!" Dean yelled, but it was too late, Luc had yanked the disc off and sped away in a stream of neon orange light up the steps.

The three followed him up the steps and were led to the roof of the black, mountainous structure. They found Luc standing on the edge of the plateau, his hair blowing wildly in the strong gusts of wind as he punched in a code on Castiel's disc.

Dean's eyes went wide with horror. "Stop! Cas you gotta get-" He turned back to see Castiel on the ground, lying flat on his back. The blue lights of his suit blinked out, and his eyes were wide and lifeless. "Cas!" Dean knelt down next to him and put his hand on the Angel's now dark chest. He shook him to no avail; the only movement left was his dark messy hair and long black coat lightly fluttering in the wind. Dean felt his eyes begin to burn and his shoulders shake. "No..." He whispered through quivering lips.

A feeling of emptiness sunk through Dean, like a large chunk of his data had just been erased, a vital chunk. The void was instantaneous upon seeing his Angel lying unresponsive. He hung his head, and squeezed his eyes shut, making everything go black for just a moment, as tears fell, landing on Castiel's pale cheek.

Dean looked over his shoulder, glaring at the evil piece of shit that stole his brother's face, and his Angel's life. He was ready to tear Luc apart with everything he had, but Sam was way ahead of him. Dean's younger brother was barreling toward Luc, and leapt on him, knocking them both to the ground as they threw punches back and forth. Castiel's disc skidded off to the side, nearly falling off the edge.

The ever-present dark clouds loomed above them, and thunder crashed while lightning rolled across the sky. Dean felt a strike through his body, but it wasn't lightning, it was an intense feeling of fear, and anger. He bolted up and ran toward Luc, who had Sam by the neck, and Castiel's disc under his foot.

Dean skidded to a stop in front of Luc, his chest heaving, fists clenched, and cheeks streaked with tears.

"So, I think you know the score here, Dean." Luc shouted over the roaring wind and thunder. "The Angel's disc or your brother. What's it gonna be?"

Dean stepped up close, looking to his brother, who was thrashing about in Luc's grip, his feet grazing the edge. Then he looked to Castiel's disc that Luc was scooting closer and closer to the cliff. Dean's face straightened out, dead serious. "Both."

Luc threw his head back in a burst of laughter, and another loud boom of thunder struck, giving Dean an opportunity that he couldn't miss. He grabbed Luc by the waist, and twirled him around, sending Sam and Castiel's disc sliding across the roof, away from the edge.

"No! You fool!" Luc cried out in shock as he and Dean tumbled down the cliff.

"Dean!" Sam screamed his older brother's name. Dean's eyes travelled from Sam's panicked face, to Castiel's still body, before he closed them and fell, accepting his fate.

As he plummeted downward, he could hear the faded sound of Luc cursing next to him, and the crashing of waves on the deep, dark ocean they were headed towards. Images of his brother were projected in his mind. Good images. Happy images. When they played together as young programs, pretending to compete in lightcycle races and disc wars. When they worked together, hunting down and deleting corrupted files.

Then flashed images of a program with huge, brilliant, bright blue wings...a dark, messy head of hair...a soft smile...and blue eyes. So blue. Staring at him, just staring forever. The last image ever to be projected from Dean's memory, and he was happy with it.

His body splashed into the ocean, and he sunk deep, deep down. Blue eyes in his mind, still staring, but slowly fading away into black.

Just as the green lights of Dean's suit began to flicker, a pair of strong arms wrapped around him from behind. He was flown out of the water and through the sky, far away, the exact distance unknown to him as he faded in and out of consciousness.

Dean felt himself standing on his feet, but still being held, as he finally rebooted completely. He blinked a few times before focusing in on two big, deep blue eyes staring at him. These he knew for sure were the real thing this time, not just an image. They could only be that gorgeous in person.

"Cas?"

"Dean." The Angel's relief was apparent in his voice, and in the way his face relaxed as his lips turned up in a small smile.

Dean took Castiel's face in his hands, desperate to feel just how real it was. He grinned. "You saved me yet again."

"Sam fixed my disc and reattached it just in time."

"That nerd." Dean's grin spread, reaching his eyes. "I owe him."

"Dean..." Castiel's gaze lowered. He looked confused and ashamed. He took Dean's wrists in his hands and removed them from his face, just slightly. "You chose my life over yours."

"Yeah."

"Why?" Castiel slowly looked back up at Dean, still puzzled.

"Ain't it obvious?" Dean chuckled. "'Cause I love you."

Dean's words elicited a shaky draw of breath from Castiel that was cut off when a pair of lips touched his. Castiel blinked, and his hands jerked up, releasing Dean's wrists. Dean took the opportunity to slip one hand around Cas' waist, and another on his neck, pushing him in closer. Castiel's eyes slowly shut, and his hands moved to squeeze Dean's shoulders, as their kiss deepened.

Their lips opened just slightly, and Dean tilted his head as he dipped his tongue softly into Castiel's mouth. The angel responded with a small noise of surprise at the back of his throat, before allowing his own tongue to move with Dean's. The kiss stayed a slow, soft movement of lips and tongues, as they both tilted their heads from side to side while exploring each other's mouths.

Thunder rolled above them, the lines of the grid glowed beneath their feet, and the outline of the neon city in the distance shined bright. The lights of their suits and surroundings colored their intertwined bodies as they kissed for a few moments longer.

Their lips parted and they pressed their foreheads together, letting their eyes meet once again. Castiel's wings fluttered with delight, and Dean chuckled softly in adoration.

"I knew you'd catch me if I fell." Dean whispered, before rejoining their lips. Castiel wrapped his arms around Dean's neck, pulling him in even closer. They opened their mouths up wider this time, letting their tongues collide in a more passionate, fierce kiss. They gripped onto each other tight as they kissed and kissed, sucking the air out of their lungs.

Castiel's wings flapped with excitement, and Dean could feel the warm breeze it caused. It made him smile onto his Angel's lips. He felt Castiel smile back. They parted their kiss just slightly, and barely opened up their eyes.

"I'll always catch you, Dean," Castiel softly pressed his lips to Dean's. "because I love you too."

end of line


End file.
